


Cinder-Jaehee

by Scriberat



Category: Mystic Messenger (Video Game)
Genre: F/M, fairy tale AU, mystic messenger week
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-10
Updated: 2016-11-10
Packaged: 2018-08-30 06:38:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,958
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8522467
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Scriberat/pseuds/Scriberat
Summary: Everyone knows how Cinderella goes to the ball, meets Prince Charming, gets married, and lives happily ever after. What if it was Jaehee, instead? What if her prince was Zen? For Mystic Messenger Week 2016





	

Once upon a time, there was a lovely young girl whose father had died. He had taken care of her and her mother, having been a wealthy merchant. When he left, they no longer had the income to support themselves, but they did have a large amount of savings. Even so, the girl’s mother became sick. The doctors couldn’t save her, no matter how hard they tried. With both parents gone, the young girl was sent to live with her aunt and uncle.

“Jaehee!” That was her aunt, screaming for breakfast, as usual. Ever since Jaehee’s parents had died and left her with her aunt, the older woman had called her a nuisance and a burden. In order to ease that burden, Jaehee had tried to be a good housekeeper, so that her aunt didn’t have to do so much for her.

Her days started with making breakfast for her aunt, uncle, and two cousins. As she cracked eggs into a frying pan, she could hear thuds and crashes as her cousins tried to get up without bruising themselves and failed. Adding bacon was accompanied by another scream from her aunt, and an attempt at calming from her uncle.

“Breakfast is almost ready!” Jaehee shouted up the stairs. She set a fire in the oven and started toasting bread. It was a plain breakfast, but it was good. If Jaehee knew anything, it was how to be useful. Once she had breakfast finished, she brought it out to the dining room where her extended family sat.

“About time you got it out here,” her aunt muttered. Jaehee said nothing. There was no winning with that woman, so she left it alone. Then she went to pick some flowers for the table. Her return was greeted with her aunt complaining about her, like it was some new topic. Jaehee ignored what her aunt was saying as she ate. She had heard it all before, in the years since her parents died. Jaehee was a burden. Jaehee wanted too much. Jaehee cost so much money.

Jaehee ate quickly and left to clean the house before taking some time to go to the market.

The market was as busy as it always was, at this time of day. With families fed and houses swept, the women of the city conglomerated with gossip and coin to get news and vegetables. While Jaehee hardly participated in the gossip, she did enjoy hearing tidbits here and there. She purchased various foods for the next few meals, and sold some extra eggs she had, all using haggling tricks from the books she read.

“You’re very good at bargaining,” said a stranger. Jaehee turned around to see a man with aqua hair and eyes standing before her. She raised an eyebrow at the strange color, then addressed him.

“I have studied, yes.”

“Would you like a job? I have a friend who’s looking for an assistant.” Jaehee looked at the man suspiciously. She didn’t know him at all. This could be trouble.

“How do I know I can trust you?” she asked. The man smiled, then held out his hand.

“I’m afraid I have only my word. My name is V, by the way.”

“Jaehee…” Jaehee shook his hand warily.

“He’s here, in town. He works at the C&R building,” the man said. “We can go meet him now, if it’s alright with you.”

“That… should be fine. As long as I can get home soon. I have groceries.”

Thus was the start of Jaehee working for one Jumin Han. V took her to the C&R building, the tallest in the city, aside from the royal family’s castle. When she met with him, sitting on the other side of his desk, he had asked her questions about business and commerce, which she answered easily.

“Alright, I’m impressed. Your ability to read people is as good as always, V,” Jumin said. He looked at the other man. V smiled.

“Glad to be of help. I’ll see you around, then.”

“See you.” V left the office. Jaehee watched him go, a sudden feeling of apprehension in her chest. What was she doing, getting a job? She was already busy enough at home!

“Now, there is a problem I have that must be resolved before we can start,” Jumin said, coming around his desk toward her. She stiffened as he pulled at a lock of her hair.

“A-a problem?” Jaehee tried to calm down, but this was what she’d been afraid of.

“Yes. I can’t say I like women much, so if you want to work here, you’ll need to cut your hair. And wear these. I also have a uniform for you to wear downstairs. I’ll have an intern give it to you.”

“What? Er, yes sir. I’ll cut my hair as soon as I get home,” Jaehee said as she was handed a pair of glasses. There was no degree to them, so they wouldn’t actually do anything to improve her vision, not that it needed improving.

“Excellent.” Jumin pulled a bell string, and an intern came in a moment after.

“Yes, Mr. Han?”

“Take our newest employee to get a uniform. You start tomorrow, Assistant Kang.”

“Thank you, Mr. Han, for employing me.” Jaehee left with the intern, got a uniform, and headed home with her groceries. She debated telling her aunt that she had gotten a job, but decided against it. She wouldn’t keep any of the money if she said anything.

When she got back, her aunt was right there waiting for her, angry as a hornet and with twice the sting at the ready. Jaehee had gotten used to her yelling, and only wished for an escape.

“Where have you been? You should have been back an hour ago!”

“I was busy,” Jaehee replied.

“I should say so! What were you doing, buying clothes? With whose money?” Jaehee said nothing, simply moved past her aunt and put the groceries away in the kitchen, setting her new uniform down on the table. Her aunt followed, watching her like a hawk. With the groceries put away, Jaehee started preparing a light lunch for the family.

“If you’d like to wait in the dining hall, I’ll bring lunch to you,” she said. Her aunt finally left her alone. Jaehee sighed, looking at the uniform sitting on the table. She finished making lunch, bringing the food to the dining hall, and ate quickly.

After lunch, Jaehee went to her room, cutting her hair as soon as her hands landed on the scissors. It made it extremely obvious that something was happening with her. She had never touched her hair before this aside from brushing it. But, she got it cut down to a man’s length, making herself look, from a distance, less female. She put on her new glasses and uniform. Altogether, she felt she looked very professional. It was good. Jaehee pulled her uniform off, changing back into her normal clothes.

The next day, after she had finished her chores, Jaehee went to work. She showed up, expecting some sort of orientation. Jumin gave her all the orientation she needed for her job: desk was there, papers needed to be organized, work needed to be done. Jaehee got to immediately. She checked numbers and did a lot of math, but found herself enjoying it --- for the first couple weeks. Then it started to grind, as she did the same things every day. She got respite in a small theater group that performed, enjoying the acting of their lead, a man named Zen, who had silver hair and red eyes.

There was the occasional cat project that seemed to appear from nowhere, which quickly became hated. They were more work, and less money. She tried to keep track of Jumin’s father’s girlfriends for awhile, but the task proved impossible. She gave up on that. Even so, with monotonous work and ridiculous side projects, Jaehee worked there for four years, from twenty one to twenty five.

A ball was to be held, to celebrate the Crown Prince’s imminent coronation. He was to choose a wife at the ball, which meant every young maiden in the kingdom was invited. That included Jaehee, though her aunt would prefer her own daughter be chosen. Jaehee didn’t pay too much attention to her daughter. Their lives hardly ever mixed, aside from mealtimes. Besides, she didn’t have time to go to the ball, anyway.

“You should go,” Jumin said, shoving a letter at her. It was an invitation for the ball. Jaehee raised an eyebrow at it, looking behind Jumin at a coworker who was watching her letter nervously.

“If I may, you should probably give that back to Mei before she passes out from worry.” Jumin looked behind him at the employee, then handed the letter back.

“I’ll never understand women,” he muttered. “Getting so worried over a letter. Anyway, I want you to go to represent our company. Be as social as possible. I wasn’t invited to go, so I can’t do so myself. This is an order for all the young women in our company, to promote the name as much as possible.”

“Yes, sir.” Jaehee added the ball to her schedule. “Should I attend all three nights?”

“If possible.”

This resulted in Jaehee, who owned no dresses, going out and finding three dresses. With the help of the shopkeeper, she was able to find three that suited her. Her aunt was not happy about her having them, and destroyed them immediately. Jaehee would be too busy that night to go to the ball, her aunt would make sure of it.

And she did. She made messes all around the house, getting her daughter ready to go meet the prince and find her happily ever after, leaving Jaehee to clean it all up. She got to work, hoping that she could make it to represent Jumin for at least a little while.

“Abracadabra! Wizard Seven has arrived!” a voice shouted gleefully. Jaehee looked up to see a man younger than her appear, with gold eyes, red hair, and a black hoodie sporting gold details. He smiled, looking around through yellow and gray striped glasses. Jaehee couldn’t believe her eyes. Who was this guy?

“Who are you?” she asked.

“I’m God Seven, the answer to your prayers!”

“You said you were a wizard.”

“Also true. Anyway, I’m here to bring you to the ball personally.”

“Bring me to the ball? I need to clean this house, first.” Seven looked around, then snapped his fingers. The house was clean instantly.

“Done. You also need… a dress!” Snap, and Jaehee was wearing a beautiful yellow ballgown. “And shoes.” A nice pair of shoes appeared. “Accessories!” Necklace and bracelet adorned Jaehee’s body.

“This is too much,” she said, looking at herself.

“Wrong! It’s not enough! Outside we go!” Seven ran through the front door, not even bothering to open it. Jaehee followed, having to pull the door open to cross the threshold.

“Carriage!” A pumpkin was transformed. “And horses!” Mice were made into horses. Jaehee stared in shock. She had no idea that anyone could be so powerful. “And… a footman and coach! And there we go!” He completed his project, showing off with a flourish. “Tada!”

“I can’t go to the ball,” Jaehee said.

“You have to for your job, right?”

“Yes...”

“And you don’t want to disappoint your boss, right?”

“No, I don’t.”

“Then come on! Get in the pumpkin carriage.” Jaehee sighed. It seemed she had no choice. Jaehee climbed in, looking back.

“If you’re worried about your aunt and cousin, don’t be. The spells are set to revert at midnight, and they’re going to pull you right back here. Not instantly, of course. That would be ridiculous. I can’t just transport people.”

“So, I’ll be here before dawn?”

“Yup, and before your aunt. Now, off you go!” The carriage started moving, and Jaehee looked out the window to Seven, but he was gone, just like that. She looked toward the castle looming in the distance, wondering what it would be like to be at a ball.

It wasn’t actually all that great. Most of the guests were, of course, the other women invited, and none of them wanted to talk business. She ran into a couple women from C&R. They seemed more enthralled by dancing with the prince than doing actual work.

The prince arrived at last, and everyone turned to look at him. He wasn’t much to look at, fairly average in build with brown hair and eyes, but he did hold considerable power. She would have to get a dance with him to promote the company. Behind him was another man, this time taller, more fit, with silver hair and a mask over his face. Jaehee thought she recognized him from the theater. After all, how many people had silver hair? But if he was standing behind the Crown Prince, that meant he was also a prince…?

It took a couple hours, but Jaehee finally managed to snag a dance with the Crown Prince. During the dance, she told him about her work, and how good the company was. He smirked, and said he would look into C&R, to see if he wanted to make a proper investment. Her work was done, just as another came to claim her hand.

That other was the silver haired man.

“Hello,” he said. “What’s a beautiful maiden like you doing here with my brother?” Jaehee could almost feel the smile behind the mask.

“I’m conducting business on behalf of my boss’s company,” she said, looking into the eye holes, trying to see the color beyond them.

“Is that so? How’s it going?”

“He said he would try to make a proper investment.”

“I see. Then, would you like to dance?” He extended his hand. His movements were so familiar. He had to be Zen.

“Certainly,” Jaehee said. After all, she was meant to do business, and having an ear on the inside for the company would be a good thing. The two of them danced the rest of the evening, talking and getting to know each other. They shared names, and Jaehee confirmed that he was Zen. She confessed to being a fan.

Then midnight arrived with its tolling. Jaehee felt the pull of the magic as it tried to return to her house. She started away immediately.

“I’m sorry, I have to go.”

“Wait, not yet. One more dance?”

“There’s no time, I have to leave now.” She ran back to the carriage, climbing in easily. Turning toward the castle as she closed the door, Jaehee could see Zen standing there, and turned away.

The next night was just as interesting as the first. Once again, her aunt had created problems around the house that would take all night to fix. Wizard Seven appeared, this time making her a beautiful pink dress and sending her on her way with a flourish.

She talked more to the Crown Prince about her company, but he was soon claimed by other women interested in his hand. That left the rest of the night to Zen, bringing them even closer.

Zen had a plan, this time. He would bring her out into the gardens, where the bells couldn’t be heard, and Jaehee wouldn’t end up leaving. It was foolproof. But Jaehee did leave, apologizing again, and getting away before he could stop her. He had gotten a hold on her bracelet, pulling it off her wrist, but it left his hand in a flash and reappeared on her wrist. Once again, he was left at the top of the stairs as she climbed into her carriage and rode away.

“I don’t want the stuffy Crown Prince! He’s boring! I want Zen!” Jaehee heard her cousin screaming as she prepared for the ball.

“You’re going for the Crown Prince because he’s the one with the most power! Now get into your dress!” Jaehee smirked. Zen wouldn’t want her cousin, she was sure of it. She kept her thoughts to herself, finishing a small item she’d started earlier. It was a wooden brooch that she’d carved. Jaehee wanted to give it to Zen that night. He had said the night before that he would be dressed in silver, so she’d painted the wood to match.

Her cousin and aunt left for the last night of the ball, leaving Jaehee to take care of the house. Wizard Seven arrived once again.

“Can you make my dress navy blue tonight? I have a pair of glass slippers from my mother that I want to wear, and they would match perfectly with navy blue.” Silver also matched well.

“Navy blue? My pleasure!” He bowed, then made the dress. It was spectacular, deep as midnight and shining with tiny crystals like stars. “There! It’s gorgeous. Have fun at the ball!” Jaehee spun around, admiring how the crystals shone. She stepped into her shoes, then headed off to the ball.

Zen watched her arrive, turning to his squire, Yoosung.

“Have the guards spread pitch on the steps. I don’t want her to go this time.”

“Right. See you later.” Yoosung left to get pitch spread, and Zen went off to find Jaehee.

“Why do you always leave early?” Zen asked. Jaehee smiled.

“I have work in the morning,” she said. “It demands my attention, regardless of circumstance.” They talked more, and danced as usual. Jaehee suddenly realized that she hadn’t seen her cousin once. Zen told her that there were two ballrooms, one for women deemed somehow worthy of the Crown Prince’s attention, the other for women deemed… less so. Jaehee gave Zen the brooch she had made, and he put it on immediately.

Then midnight came. The bells rang out, and Jaehee ran off again. Zen followed as closely as he could, but she was fast. She bolted out the front door and down the steps, passing a confused young man with violet eyes and running into something sticky. It clung to her shoe, adhered to the steps, and trapped one foot in place. The magic in her dress was still pulling away, back to home, but she couldn’t move. Then she realized that she could just leave it behind. As the two of them had discovered last night, her outfit wouldn’t leave her body permanently until she was back home.

Jaehee left the shoe behind and ran down the steps. Zen collected it, handing it to Yoosung as she got away once more.

“We can find her, now. She has to live somewhere.”

“I’ll start on that right away,” Yoosung said, turning away and running off.

A call was made to the kingdom the next day. A young maiden had left her shoe behind at the ball the previous night, and she would win the second prince’s hand in marriage. Of course Jaehee’s aunt was excited. She, too, was excited. Though she had forgotten that the slippers weren’t enchanted and thus wouldn’t return to her, it did give Zen a chance of finding her.

He showed up later that afternoon.

“Oh, Zen!” screeched Jaehee’s cousin. She rolled her eyes, going down to see what was going on. Zen was at the door, holding her slipper. Her aunt was there, too, and seemed surprised. Jaehee hid, peeking around the corner.

“What brings you to our humble abode?”

“I’ve been made aware by my court wizard that the owner of this slipper lives here.”

“Really? It’s not m--”

“How wonderful. My daughter is right here, your highness.” Jaehee saw her aunt push her cousin at Zen. Apparently second was good enough if first was out of reach. She realized that her aunt knew exactly what that slipper was, also saw Zen and the blond from last night exchange glances.

“Ah, perhaps we should have you try it on first, to make sure you’re the right girl.”

“Oh, okay.” Jaehee’s cousin tried the slipper on, but it refused to fit. The blond shrugged.

“Is there anyone else in this house who could fit into it?”

“I’m afraid not,” said Jaehee’s aunt. Zen sighed, shoulders drooping.

“Alright. I’m sorry for bothering you.”

“Frowning isn’t good for your skin, Zen,” Jaehee said, coming out of hiding. Zen smiled widely as she appeared.

“What are you doing here? Go take care of the house! That’s your job!”

“Actually, my job is with C&R, as it has been for the past four years. And that is my slipper. I left it behind last night by accident.”

“I thought it was enchanted like your bracelet was. Then it stayed.”

“Yes. It was my mother’s. She wore them on her wedding day.”

“What a ridiculous story! I cannot believe this drivel!” Jaehee’s aunt screeched. She grabbed the slipper, smashing it on the ground, then turned to Jaehee.

“You! You’re going to pay for this!” Her aunt advanced on her. Jaehee stood her ground, prepared to fight. She’d been getting lessons from one of the other employees in taekwondo.

“You don’t want to do that,” the blond said. He had seemed so docile before, but now he looked absolutely terrifying.

“Yoosung--”

“Don’t worry. I’ve got this.” He grabbed Jaehee’s aunt, throwing her onto the ground, then kept an eye on her to make sure she didn’t cause any more trouble.

“Jaehee, it’s good to see you. I, uh, I know that the marriage thing is a bit… over the top.” Zen rubbed his neck. Jaehee smiled.

“Why don’t we start by going on some proper dates?”

“That sounds perfect. Come--”

“Wait!” They turned to see Jaehee’s cousin standing there. “You made me test the slipper. Why not her!?”

“Because--”

“No, she’s right. I should test it, it’s only fair,” Jaehee said, starting toward her room.

“But the slipper smashed,” Yoosung said.

“That’s alright. I have the other one.”

They were married a few months later. It was a grand ceremony, but Jaehee didn’t like the idea of castle life. She wasn’t a fan of working for a large company, either, but the time she’d spent with Zen had gotten her interested in coffee. Jaehee decided, in the months they were together, that she wanted to open her own cafe. With Jumin’s backing, she did just that, and even made a stage for it, so that Zen and his group could perform whenever. It was one of those nights when a couple familiar faces appeared.

“V, Wizard Seven. What brings you two here?” Jaehee asked. She tucked a strand of long hair behind her ear, looking at the two men and getting mugs for them both.

“We’re here to enjoy the show,” V said. “I heard this place is quite popular. I’m glad you’ve found your purpose in life.”

“Yes, it’s thanks to Seven that I was able to attend the ball in the first place. I am quite thankful for that.” Another couple people came into the cafe, also friends of Jaehee.

“Hello, Ms. Kang. Or rather, Mrs. Ryu,” Jumin said. He was followed by Yoosung, who had taken a job at C&R after Zen had abandoned his title to pursue acting.

“Hello, Jumin. Hello, Yoosung.”

“Hiya!” Yoosung sat down next to Seven. Jumin settled next to V. The curtain was drawn back from the stage, and they could see Zen standing there, ready to perform. When he started, the audience quieted immediately, and throughout the play, everyone was drawn in completely. They loved it.

After the performance, Zen came over to talk to everyone, greeting them, checking in on Yoosung. He kissed Jaehee, holding a strand of her hair, then kissed it, too.

They were together, and they lived happily ever after.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading my work! If you have any ideas on improvement for future pieces, please let me know in the comments! :D:D:D


End file.
